Acting chief: Officers in Thomas case watched video

Aug. 12, 2011

Updated Aug. 21, 2013 1:17 p.m.

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With members of the media recording, Fullerton School Board member Chris Thompson, right, and Tony Bushala, a local activist, formally file a notice of intention to recall three members of the Fullerton City Council with Assistant City Clerk Mea Klein at City Hall on Friday morning. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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After a closed-session meeting where the Fullerton City Council decided to recommend hiring special investigator Michael Gennaco, Gennaco fields reporters' questions about the Kelly Thomas case Friday morning. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Michael Gennaco, chief attorney for Office of Independent Review, which investigates allegations of officer misconduct and monitors the Los Angeles County Sheriff's Department, might be hired by the city of Fullerton. RIC FRANCIS, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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Fullerton Mayor F. Richard Jones fields comments from the public during an open-session of the Fullerton City Council's special meeting. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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This 1998 family photo released by the Thomas family on Aug. 3 shows Kelly Thomas. Thomas, 37, died July 10, five days after officers investigating car burglary reports tried to search his backpack. The prosecutor whose office is investigating the death of Thomas, a homeless, schizophrenic man, after a violent fight with police says he hasn't seen evidence suggesting the officers intended to kill him. THOMAS FAMILY, THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

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Fullerton City Council members excuse themselves to start a closed-session meeting to discuss weather to recommend hiring a special investigator in the Kelly Thomas case. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Erin Lewis, right, of Fullerton gives a hug of support to Homeless Advocate and former homeless person Susan Garfield Wright, who addressed the Fullerton City Council before a closed-session meeting. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Cathy Thomas, mother of Kelly Thomas, listens as Fullerton City Attorney Richard D. Jones informs the public and the media the council decided to recommend hiring special investigator Michael Gennaco in the Kelly Thomas case. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Fullerton Mayor F. Richard Jones listens as Fullerton City Attorney Richard D. Jones addresses the public after the special closed-session meeting. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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A cameraman records Michael Gennaco as he fields questions from reporters about the Kelly Thomas case Friday morning. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Special investigator Michael Gennaco fields questions about the Kelly Thomas case in the Fullerton City Council chambers Friday morning. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

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Fullerton Police Capt. Kevin Hamilton, appointed as acting police chief, answers reporters questions after a special council meeting Friday. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

With members of the media recording, Fullerton School Board member Chris Thompson, right, and Tony Bushala, a local activist, formally file a notice of intention to recall three members of the Fullerton City Council with Assistant City Clerk Mea Klein at City Hall on Friday morning. KEN STEINHARDT, THE ORANGE COUNTY REGISTER

The acting chief of Fullerton's Police Department on Friday defended officers' use of surveillance video and audio recordings when they prepared reports about their deadly confrontation with Kelly Thomas.

Thomas died five days after his encounter with six Fullerton officers left him with severe head and neck injuries. At least some of the officers later reviewed recordings of the incident while they wrote their reports, Capt. Kevin Hamilton, the acting chief, said.

The surveillance tape captured last month's violent confrontation and is now in the hands of the Orange County District Attorney's Office. That office and the police department have declined to release the tape publicly, saying it could influence the recollections of potential witnesses.

Hamilton did not know whether all six officers saw the video, or whether they watched it together.

"The inference seems to be that there was something sinister in that, or we were trying to help the officers falsify the reports in some way, or make the reports inaccurate," Hamilton said. "I'm here to tell you that it is absolutely untrue.... It is exactly the opposite.

"Officers should be accountable in all that they do and it should be reflected in the police report."

An attorney representing Thomas' father, Ron, said the tape could have affected the officers' testimony. Garo Mardirossian accused the officers on Friday of "circling the wagons."

The acting chief's remarks followed a nearly three-hour special meeting at City Hall during which the City Council moved closer to hiring an outside consultant to review Kelly Thomas' death and police procedures.

OUTSIDE INVESTIGATION

The City Council took no action at the meeting, but could approve a final deal on Tuesday to hire Michael Gennaco, a specialist in examining law-enforcement agencies. Gennaco also is the chief attorney for the Los Angeles County Office of Independent Review.

If hired, Gennaco said he will examine the Fullerton department's training, use-of-force policies and methods for dealing with homeless and mentally ill people. He also will look into accountability and discipline within the department.

"Obviously, the video will tell some of the story," Gennaco said. "But that all needs to be corroborated to the degree possible by witness testimony.... Witness testimony is in some ways more important than the video itself.

"The issue obviously speaks to force and whether or not that force was reasonable or unreasonable, or necessary or unnecessary."

Details of Gennaco's possible contract with the city, such as how much he would be paid, did not emerge from Friday's meeting. The city manager has said the price tag could be $60,000 to $70,000. His investigation would parallel at least three other ongoing probes into Thomas' death: an internal investigation by the police, an investigation by the District Attorney's Office and a Civil Rights investigation by the FBI.

City Attorney Richard Jones said the case is not "going to go away in a short period of time. It might be several years before it is all sorted out."

Thomas' father says the six officers beat his son to death and has said he wants them jailed and, in some cases, put to death for what he describes as capital murder. On Friday, he released a new photograph of his son's face, disfigured with blood and bruises.

Ron Thomas has signaled his intent to file a civil lawsuit against the city, and on Friday said he will not accept a settlement. He said he met with District Attorney Tony Rackauckas on Friday morning and left with the belief that the D.A.'s investigation will not yield the results he wants.

"I had the feeling it's going to be much lesser charges," Ron Thomas said. But, he said, "there were important things I needed to get across to him.

"Why is it necessary to beat someone in the head and face? Why didn't they just handcuff him? I asked the D.A. this. Of course, he didn't have an answer."

RECALL EFFORT

Meanwhile, a recall effort against three of the five City Council members continues to move forward. The campaign is targeting Mayor F. Richard Jones and City Council members Pat McKinley and Don Bankhead; critics say they have not been active enough since Kelly Thomas' death.

Recall proponents have submitted documents to get the process started. They now have to write a petition, which must be approved by city officials. They will then have to gather about 10,500 valid signatures to get the recall onto a ballot.

"Basically, it is about a lack of transparency," said Tony Bushala, a local activist who runs the Friends for Fullerton's Future blog and is one of the recall organizers. "It starts with what happened with Kelly Thomas and goes back to redevelopment issues and raising the water rates."

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